ST. PAUL, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As environmental concerns and energy efficiency become increasingly top
of mind for many people around the world, corporate social
responsibility migrates from just a watchword to a strategic initiative
for responsible institutions to demonstrate their commitment to these
ideals. Together, the actions of consumers, academia, and industry can
tremendously impact energy expenditures and conservation. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized 3M for a decade of
energy management achievements with the EPA ENERGY STAR® Sustained
Excellence Award for the 10th year in a row. 3M is the only
industrial company in the world to attain this privilege.

“It is an honor that the EPA has recognized 3M and provided the
framework for corporate energy efficiency,” said Steve Schultz, 3M’s
Corporate Energy Manager. “3M is known for its commitment to innovation,
and that commitment doesn’t just apply to the products we invent. We
have spent the past 10 years, and in fact many years before that,
continually seeking out ways that we can improve our processes, raw
materials and more in order to achieve greater efficiency and resource
savings. Moreover, we endeavor to share our best practices with our
constituents in an effort to pay it forward.”

This year’s award puts 3M in exclusive territory, as no other industrial
company has received the “Sustained
Excellence” recognition—the EPA’s highest ENERGY STAR award—as many
times. ENERGY STAR was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency in 1992 as a voluntary market-based partnership to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions through increased efficiency. The annual ENERGY
STAR Sustained Excellence Award honors organizations that have made
outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through best
practices and organization-wide energy savings.

Adding to its achievements, 3M also received Xcel Energy’s 2013 Energy
Efficiency Expo Award for having the highest gas savings by a commercial
customer (nearly 1.8 million therms).

A sampling of 2013 efforts for which EPA recognized 3M includes:

Implementation of 252 projects, which resulted in savings of $8.79
million and 61,700 metric tons (MT) of CO2

Development of a strategic initiative to identify and implement
projects to make step-change improvements in greenhouse gas emissions
and energy efficiency

Formation of Centers of Excellence to integrate all aspects of
sustainability into business strategies across the company

These achievements are made possible with the expertise of 3M employees
from around the world. To celebrate their accomplishments, 3M is marking
Earth Day today with a number of initiatives. Jean Lupinacci, Chief of
the ENERGY STAR Commercial and Industrial Branch at the EPA, will
address employees on industrial energy efficiency and its role in
protecting the environment. Tesla cars, which are made with several 3M
technologies, will be displayed at the company’s world headquarters in
St. Paul to showcase next-generation, sustainable autos. During the
day’s events, employees will also see examples of sustainable products,
like 3M Novec Engineered Fluids; 3M Window Films; and 3M LED Advanced
Lighting.

In celebration of 3M’s bronze award from the League of American
Bicyclists recognizing 3M as a “Bicycle Friendly Company,” employees are
encouraged to bike to work on Earth Day. Seventy employees participated
in the bike to work event in 2013, and 3M is striving to beat that
number this year. Additional 3M Earth Day activity includes the
opportunity for volunteers to create mobile battery powered lights using
3M Solar Mirror Film, which will ultimately be donated to schoolchildren
in Africa through the nonprofit New Vision Renewable Energy. 3M will
also match grants for employee donations to New Vision Renewable Energy
and The Nature Conservancy during the 3M environmental match period in
April.

To reiterate its commitment to corporate responsibility, 3M recently
became a member of the United
Nations Global Compact. “We are extremely proud of our achievements
in energy efficiency and corporate responsibility, and the Compact
formalizes that commitment,” said Gayle Schueller, 3M’s vice president
of Global Sustainability. “We look forward to building an even stronger
record in the years to come.”

The U.N. Global Compact outlines 10 principles in the areas of human
rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption, and is the largest
voluntary corporate responsibility initiative in the world. While 3M has
always acted in accordance with the core values represented by the
Compact, this formal commitment aligns the company’s business practices
and strategies with these 10 principles, and to publicly report progress
against them.

About 3M3M captures the spark of new ideas and transforms
them into thousands of ingenious products. Our culture of creative
collaboration inspires a never-ending stream of powerful technologies
that make life better. 3M is the innovation company that never stops
inventing. With $31 billion in sales, 3M employs 89,000 people worldwide
and has operations in more than 70 countries. For more information,
visit www.3M.com
or follow @3MNews
on Twitter.

3M and Novec are trademarks of 3M Company. ENERGY STAR is a trademark
of the Environmental Protection Agency. Tesla is a trademark of Tesla
Motors, Inc.